NATURE IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD: Greening ideas for the Swampscott school-building design team
Toni Bandrowicz
Opportunity seldom knocks twice. As the town of Swampscott embarks upon the siting of a new elementary school, I can hear it knocking.
Here, at the planning stage, the town has the opportunity to ensure that the new school is environmentally sustainable, protects neighboring natural areas, and provides ample open space for play and learning. It will be much harder and more expensive to incorporate energy saving and sustainable solutions after the project is completed, rather than now at the design phase.
Why is this important? It’s because open space - not just classroom space - is vital to our children’s education. Research consistently shows that access to open space, especially natural green open space, promotes cognitive, physical, social and emotional wellbeing. In designing the new school, we need to expand open space wherever possible, and protect the